Automatic switch.



P. R. IMUBERTY. AUTOMATIC SWITCH.

'APPLIUATION lILED DBO. 26, 1912. I

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F. R. MGBERTY. AUTOMATIC SWITCH. APPLIGAT-10N FILED 9110.26, 1912.

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l,ment of the contact arms being such that when Aone Contact arm leaves a row of convented certain new and usefu UNITED sTATas PATENT ormoni.'

FRANK ROBERT MCBERTY, OF ANTWERP, BELGIUM, .ASSIGNOR T0 WESTERN ELECTRIC- COMPANY, OFVNEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPGRATIN OF'ILLINOIS'.'

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Specification of Letters Patent.

ratentedaan. 27, 1era Application filed December 2t; 1912. Serial No. '738,80.`

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANK ROBERT MCBERTY, a citizen of the United States,

residing at Antwerp, in the Province of Antwerp and Kingdom of Beloium, have in- Improvements in Automatic Switches, of which the .follow- `ing. 1s a specification.

This invention relates to a switch or selecting device capable of making connection with a comparatively large number of contacts during one revolution of its shaft without vit being necessary to distribute the contacts overa large area or displacing the axial direction of the shaft. This is attained in the invention by so arranging a pluralityv of Contact arms or brushes or a plurality of sets of Contact arms or brushes on the shaft that each contact arm or set of contact arms is displaced with respect to the other contact arms or sets of cont-act arms radially and axially and by providing a row of contacts to coperate with each contact arm.

The contact bank consists of several rows of` su erim osed contacts the angular dis lacep 5 t! p -contact banks the'new arrangement has other advantages consisting in the contacts of the contact banks being more accessible and i leasier to inspect.- An additional advantage is that the contact banks of selectors with contact banks having the form of an arc instead of a cylindrical form are more easilywired.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the switch, Fig. 2 shows the switch viewed from 4the top, certain parts being broken away; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the brush carriage removed from its bearings in the switch; and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the entire 'switch structure. c

' T he brush carriageis rotatedby a constantly The frame 10 of the selector is snownlixed to a rack 11 by screws 12. In the upper and lower parts of the selector frame-there are two bearings in which a shaft 13, which supports a brush mirriage 'having two ,threearmed carriers 14, 15,'is journaled.` The outer ends of each pair'of carriers 14, 15, are linked together by an angular bar 16 and by a rodl?, upon which latter the brushes 19 are pivotcd. Fixed to each angularbar 1G is a lath 18 of insulating material. Each lath 18 has a number'of deep furrows in which the brushes 19y are adapted to lic and which act as 'guides for the'same. Insula- 65 tively fixed to the shaft 13 are a number of springs 2() the free ends of which press y against the inner levers 21 of the brushes 1-9 so that these brushes vhave a tendency to remain pressed outwardly.l In addition t-o the brushes 19 there is pivoted `onzeach rod 17 near the upper end thereof, a contact arm 22 and a lever 23 carrying an insulated roller 24 attached to the .free outer yend vthereof. The end of the lever 23 carrying the roller 24 has a tendency to move outward because of the pull exerted on its other end 25 by'a spiral spring 26, and the'contact 22 Lalso is pressed outwardly by a Spring S8. Slip rings 27, embedded in insulating material are secured to the upper end of :the lshaft 13. Contacting with-,teach slip ring `is a brush the i-tee end of which i-s so shaped as to form a soldering lug 28. Four of the slip rings 27 are connect-ed with the sets of springs 20, which arey connected in multiple, and one to the spring of the arm'22. TheY soldering lugs 28 therefore form leads to the springs 2O and tothe brushes 19 as well as to; the contact .arm 22. r.

All the parts lereinbefore described, with the except-ion of the soldering lugs 28 and the brushes of which they form parts, rotate with the shaft 13 andthe brush carriage.

95 revolving shaft 29 by means of two disks 30 and 31. On 'the energization of the power magnet the disk 30 is magnetized and attracts the iron disk I31, which is attached to the shaft 13 by a flexible diaphragm. A 100 magnetic coupling'is thus brought about between the disks and 31, and the arevolving disk 30 causes the disk 31 and the switch shaft 13 with its brush carriage to rotate.

The fixed contacts 33 of the selector are embedded ini-nsulating strips34, fixed be- `tween two arc-shaped plates 35, 36. These Sets ,of contacts therefore consists of fixed contacts 33 extend through the strips 34 and are adapted to be engaged atftheir inner ends by the brushes 19. Each strip axis'of the shaft 13 and each individual set of brushes '1s so located that during its rotary travel it brushes over a 'row of sets of 2ocontacts different from the rows of sets of contacts that lie inthe paths of the other two sets of brushes.

The radial displacement of the sets of brushes 19 with respect to each other is such that when one set of brushes leaves the last set of bank contacts at the right hand end of the contact bank, one of the other sets of brushes will come into engagement with anotherl set of bank contacts at the left" hand end of the contact bank in a different row of sets of contacts.

In order to 'prevent the stopping of the carriage' of the selector-on the denergization of the power magnet 32--until a set of brushes 19 has reached the set of contacts 33 desired, a device is provided for each set of brushes consisting of the teeth 37 of the arc sha-pcd plate 35, the rubbing contact 22 .and the lever 23 with its roller 24. As long as 'a set of brushes is traveling lfrom one set of contacts 33 to the next, the rubbing contact 22' rides upon a tooth 37 and closes acircuit which will not allow the power *magnet 32 to be denergizeduntil the rubhing contact has reached the right hand end of the tooth 37 in question. While the brushes 19 are traversing the distance from one set of contacts 33 t0 the next the roller on the lever 23 belonging to the rubbing contact- 22- that is in action will be rolling over a toothf37. A s hereinbefore mentioned this roller is forced outward by a spiral spring 26; it will therefore jump into every gap between the teeth.

i' The rubbing contact 22 and the -roller lever 23 'pertaining thereto are so arranged that as soon as the contact between the rubbing contact 22 and the particular tooth 37 pf the arc shaped part 35 ceases, the roller I4 of the roller lever 23 is driven by the spiral spring 26 into a space between two teeth 37, this forcing the brush carriage to assume a position in which the set of brushes in question, that is, the set of brushes that is pivoted on the same rod 17 as the rubbing contact 22 that was in action, is ac curately centered` on a set of contacts 33. Instead of connecting all the sets of brushes 19 in parallel a separate set of slip rings 27 may be provided for each set of brushes.

I claim:

1. ln a selector, the combination with a plurality of rows of fixed terminals, of a shaft, a frame supported thereby, a plurality of rods carried extending parallel to Said shaft, contact arms pivotally supported on said rods, the said contact arms being so arranged with respect to each other and the rows of fixed terminals, that in any given position of the shaft one only of said contact arms engages its terminal row.

2. In a selector, the combination with a plurality of rows of fixed terminals, of a shaft, a frame piece at each 'end of said shaft, each said frame piece having a plurality of radially extending arms, rods extending` between the ends of said arms and lying parallel with said shaft, contact arms pivotally mounted on said rods, said arms being displaced with respect to each other angularly and in the direction of the shaft wherebyin any given position of the shaft only one of'said contact arms engages its terminal row.

3. In a selector, the combination with a 4ilurality of rows of fixed terminals, of a carriage, means for imparting uniform an continuous motion thereto, contact arms for said rows respectively, pivotally mounted on said carriage and displaced with respect to each other angularly and in the direction of the shaft.

4. In a. selector, a rotary carriage, a plurality of contact armspivotally mounted thereon, and a corresponding plurality of' groups of terminals arranged to be successively traversed by said contact arms, respectively, in the movement of said'carriage.

5. In a selector, a brush carriage, a plurality of contact arms pivotallymounted thereon, each of said contact arms being fixed in angular displacement to the others, and groups of fixed terminals, respectively, individual' to such contact arms, arranged to be successively traversed by said contact arms in the continuous movement of said carriage.

6'. In a selector, a carriage, al plurality of rods thereon, a contact arm carried by each of said rods, a group of' fixed terminals for each contact arm, said contact farms and terminals being so arranged that a'single contact arm will be in a position to engage its group of terminals at a time.

7. In a selector, a carriage, a plurality of parallel rods thereon, contact arms pivotally supported by said rods, respectively, a group by said frame and of fixed terminals for each 0f said Contact; my name this 20th day of December A. D., arms, said Contact arms and terminals being 1912.

so arranged that the groups of terminals FRANK ROBERT MCBERTY. will be successlvely-t-raversed by said con- Witnesses: 5 tact arms in the movement 0f said Carriage. TALTER F. HOFFMAN,

In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe JOHN G. ROBERTS. 

